Microsoft Corp., the world's largest software maker, said on Friday (May 6th) that it will throw its political weight behind efforts to pass any future Washington state gay anti-discrimination bill after coming under criticism for taking a neutral stance on the issue.

Microsoft Chief Executive Steve Ballmer said in a companywide e-mail sent on Friday that he had decided to support the bill after being urged by employees to end the company's neutral stance on the issue.

"Given the importance of diversity to our business, it is appropriate for the company to endorse legislation that prohibits employment discrimination on all of these grounds," Ballmer said in his memo.

Last month, local gay rights advocates had said that Microsoft withdrew its support for the bill, which was defeated in Washington state's legislature two weeks ago, after coming under pressure from a local evangelical church.

Although the latest bill was defeated, Ballmer said that any future legislation similar to the gay anti-discrimination proposal would be supported by Microsoft.

In an earlier company-wide e-mail, Ballmer denied that the software giant had been pressured to withdraw its support from the bill, and said that it had taken a neutral stance on the issue before it was introduced.

The bill, which would have barred discrimination against gays and lesbians in housing, employment and other areas, has been introduced in various forms several times over the past three decades.

Other companies with ties to the region, including Boeing Co., Nike Inc. and Molson Coors Brewing Co. had supported the gay anti-discrimination bill.

"Accordingly, Microsoft will continue to join other leading companies in supporting federal legislation that would prohibit employment discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation -- adding sexual orientation to the existing law that already covers race, sex, national origin, religion, age and disability," Ballmer said.

Ken Hutcherson, a Seattle-area pastor who has criticized same-sex marriages and called for the bill to be rejected, told local media that he approached Microsoft after two of its employees had given testimony in state legislature that indicated that the company would support the bill.

Local media reported last month that Hutcherson had threatened a national boycott of Microsoft if the company did not change its stand on the bill, and Microsoft confirmed that it had met the pastor twice.

Hutcherson did not return phone calls seeking comment. Hutcherson's Antioch Bible Church and Microsoft are both based in Redmond, Washington.

Editor: Wing